Even Small Amounts Of Aerobic Exercise May Lower Coronary Heart Disease Risk

USA Today  (8/2, Lloyd) reports, “More research shows that even small amounts of aerobic exercise help lower coronary heart disease risk, according to a review  published Monday in Circulation, the journal of the American Heart Association.” This “mega-study is part of a growing body of research showing that some physical activity provides health benefits.”

The Los Angeles Times  (8/2) “Booster Shots” blog reported that investigators analyzed data from 33 different studies. “The 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, which recommend a minimum of 150 minutes a week of moderate exercise for health benefits, were used as a measure.” The researchers found that individuals “who met those basic guidelines had a 14% lower risk of heart disease compared with people who did no leisure time physical activity.” However, “people who did less than the recommended 150 minutes per week also had lowered risk of heart disease compared with their sedentary counterparts.”

HealthDay  (8/1, Goodwin) reported that “those who did more — about 300 minutes a week, or five hours — reduced their risk of heart disease, including heart attacks, angina and bypass surgeries, by 20 percent compared to people who did no exercise, the study found.”

WebMD  (8/1, Hendrick) reported that the “researchers noticed a significant gender difference in results, which showed that exercise had a greater effect in reducing heart disease risk in women than in men.” The UK’s Telegraph  (8/2, Beckford) and MedPage Today  (8/1, Bankhead) also covered the story.